The East Taunton man has been urging his neighbors to say “Hell No” since long before city voters passed a casino referendum two years ago.

Casino opponents in Taunton may get a second chance at the polls.

Courcy said Tuesday he’ll be painting “Nov. 4” onto the sign to remind passersby when to turn out and cast votes in a statewide referendum on casino gambling.

“I’ll vote no,” said the Bristol-Plymouth Regional Technical School culinary arts instructor as he shoveled mulch near his driveway. “The Taunton casino would be about two miles away — too close to East Taunton Elementary. It’s a quality of life issue for me. And traffic in East Taunton is horrendous now.”

The state’s Supreme Judicial Court ruled Tuesday in favor of casino repeal advocates, who have been fighting to get a referendum on the general election ballot.

“I am happy that the SJC has decided to allow this petition on the ballot,” said state Rep. Keiko Orrall, a Republican representing the 12th Bristol District, which includes Lakeville, Middleboro, Berkley and the section Taunton where the Mashpee Wampanoag hope to build a resort casino dubbed “Project First Light.” “The folks at Repeal The Casino Deal worked hard to get the required signatures and I believe the people of (Massachusetts) have the right to vote on this issue.”

Mashpee Wampanoag tribe Chairman Cedric Cromwell didn’t have a solid answer whether a successful statewide referendum campaign, if approved at the polls, would automatically kill hopes of a Taunton casino.

“We are in the process of reviewing the SJC’s decision, issued earlier today,” Cromwell said in a statement. “The Tribe is committed to Project First Light and our focus is on moving forward.”

Taunton Mayor Thomas C. Hoye Jr. also needed some time to digest the news.

“In light of the SJC’s decision to allow the casino repeal initiative to go on the ballot this November, we have asked our outside gaming counsel to review the court’s opinion as it relates to the IGA between the city and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe which covers the Tribe’s ‘First Light’ casino resort project to be developed in Taunton,” Hoye said. “Our attorneys have advised us that, even if the ballot question is approved, federal law will still allow gaming to be conducted on tribal lands in Massachusetts. We look forward to the completion of the land-in-trust process by the tribe which ultimately will create new jobs for our residents and new sources of revenue for the city.”

Page 2 of 3 - Michelle Littlefield, of East Taunton, formerly co-chairwoman of Preserve Taunton’s Future, a ballot action committee opposed to the East Taunton resort casino, predicted the high court’s decision last week as the Repeal The Casino Deal group prepared to hand in thousands of signatures.

“We are ecstatic,” Littlefield said Tuesday. “It was not unexpected. We certainly expected it to turn out this way. We’re ecstatic to see this go before the voters of Massachusetts. The timing is perfect. The timing happened like it should have and it all happened for a reason.”

“This has been a true people’s campaign and it will win because of that,” former Attorney General Scott Harshbarger, a lead advisor to the effort, said in a statement. “We are seeing clear evidence of a wind at our back as people learn more-and-more about the failed promises of casinos in Massachusetts. I’m so grateful to the courageous people standing up to be counted on this issue so critical to our values as a Commonwealth.”

Littlefield estimates the Repeal The Casino Deal organization raked in more than 100,000 signatures, many more than needed to get the referendum on the ballot. Town and city clerks are validating the signatures now. If enough signatures are approved, the referendum will appear on the Nov. 4 general election ballot.

“So many communities have been affected by the threat of a casino in their neighborhood … that helped us gather close to 120,000 signatures,” Littlefield said. “I think you’ll see that a lot of communities that banded together to get these signatures will now go back out to their communities and campaign in their respective areas to make this happen.”

State Rep. Shaunna O’Connell, R-Taunton, has voiced support for the petitioners’ right to a referendum, but her support for the Taunton casino project has not wavered.

“I am always supportive of having people have their voices heard on the issues,” O’Connell said. “However, I hope that people won’t support the repeal on this one so we can continue to move forward with the casino in Taunton.”

State Sen. Marc R. Pacheco, D-Taunton, has warned that the commonwealth’s coffers could feel the brunt of a successful repeal referendum.

“One of the reasons myself and other people voted for the casino law was the opportunity to bring in more revenue to the commonwealth, create jobs and have an expanded tourism base in Massachusetts,” Pacheco said. “All of that potential goes away if it’s repealed. That would be unfortunate.”

Page 3 of 3 - He also could not answer definitively if a ballot-approved gambling ban would automatically kill the tribal casino project in Taunton.

“I know that my office as well as the Wampanoag tribe and everyone is researching the legal questions surrounding the SJC’s decision to try to get a better handle on what it all means to the different proposals out there,” Pacheco said.

The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe has a signed compact with Gov. Deval Patrick and is awaiting a land-into-trust decision from the federal government. The tribe’s casino proposal is not subject to the state licensing process.

“I think Sen. Pacheco is blowing as much smoke as the tribe is,” Littlefield said in response to Pacheco’s warnings of dire consequences for taxpayers and state-funded programs should the casino laws be undone. “Sounds like idle threats to me. I think Sen. Pacheco’s day has come and gone and his empty threats don’t scare me. We don’t need casinos right now. The economy is on a rebound. Every single voter stops and thinks how they are a going to feel if a casino comes to their community.”

Taunton voters overwhelmingly approved the local nonbinding referendum on June 9, 2012, with 7,693 residents voting for the plan and 4,571 opposing it. Turnout was 36 percent, with 12,268 of 33,742 registered voters casting ballots.